Nashville Predators general manager David Poile returned to work Thursday, two weeks after taking an errant puck that has left him blind in his right eye.

"I certainly have a greater appreciation for our players and their injuries (after) getting struck by a puck," Poile told the team's official site.

"I'm on the mend. Every day it's getting a little bit better and I'm starting to feel my old self again and starting to get excited about (when) the season resumes ...."

Poile was struck in the face by a puck during a morning skate in St. Paul, Minn., on Feb. 6 while the Predators were preparing to play the Minnesota Wild. He also fractured his nose.

Poile required three surgeries and will wear a patch over his injured eye for the foreseeable future, while admitting he may never regain the sight in his right eye.

"The downside at this point is the right eye," he told the Tennessean. "I have no sight in my right eye. The doctors are still holding hope that some sight will come back there, but at the moment, that's where we are."

Also GM of the U.S. Olympic men's hockey team, Poile was unable to attend the tournament in Sochi, Russia. But he has remained in contact with staff while receiving treatment in Nashville.